


Cookies and Conversation

by FabledPhantom



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Episode: Putting Others First - Selfishness v. Selflessness Redux | Sanders Sides, Fluff, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Mild Hurt/Comfort, PoF, Post-Episode: Putting Others First - Selfishness v. Selflessness Redux | Sanders Sides, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-19
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:14:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25994284
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FabledPhantom/pseuds/FabledPhantom
Summary: Patton and Janus bake cookies for the other sides as a sort of apology while they reflect on change, perspective, and relationships.
Relationships: Moceit, interpret it however u want I guess, platonic Moceit
Comments: 1
Kudos: 52





	Cookies and Conversation

“How are you so good at this?”  
“It’s not my first time making them.”  
Patton tilted his head, “Why’s that?”  
Janus paused, “Remus and Virgil liked them.”  
“Oh.” Patton immediately regretted his question. But it had gotten him wondering. Virgil always seemed to hate Janus, and yet now Janus was saying that he used to bake for him. He tried to keep the conversation going.  
“So what else did you used to make?”  
Janus hummed, thinking, “Edible cookie dough was one of their favorites. I really only started making it so Remus wouldn’t get sick, though,” he chuckled.  
“Roman likes raw cookie dough too. He’s got more of a sweet tooth than you’d expect. So does Logan, surprisingly.”  
Janus kept measuring out the last of the ingredients for the recipe, but he seemed to zone out a bit before speaking up quietly, hesitantly.  
“I haven’t apologized to him yet. Or the twins, for that matter.”  
“The twins?” Patton questioned, “You mean Remus too?” He was confused. Sure, Janus had been harsh to Roman, but why would Remus be upset with him?  
“He heard me call him ‘the evil twin.’”  
Patton tried to ignore the fact that his immediate, pavlovian thought was _‘but he is, isn’t he?’_ and instead gave a sympathetic look, trying to remember what Janus had taught him about the grey area of morality.  
“I haven’t talked to them either,” he confessed.  
Janus stayed quiet, pouring the last of the ingredients in the bowl for Patton to mix while he started preheating the oven.  
“I...” Patton chuckled dryly, “I really screwed up, huh?”  
Janus paused, turning to Patton and placing a hand on his shoulder.  
“What exactly do you mean by that?”  
“I mean,” he swallowed, “If I hadn’t pushed you and the others out, none of this would’ve happened. We could have been one big family from the beginning but...” he trailed off, silent tears falling as he kept his face down. Janus squeezed his shoulder.  
“We were kids, Patton. You did what you thought was best for Thomas.”  
“That’s not an excuse.”  
“It’s not,” he said bluntly, “However, it _is_ an explanation. Both of us have tried to get the right things in the wrong ways. But there’s a difference between learning from your mistakes and berating yourself for them. All that matters now is that we try to be better.”  
Patton gave him a sad smile, “Thanks, Janus.”  
Janus smiled at the sound of his name.

Patton started rolling the cookie dough into little balls before eventually turning to Janus, who was still just standing there by the counter.  
“You gonna roll the dough?”  
“...I’d rather not get my hands dirty.”  
“Oh, alright.” Patton went back to rolling the cookie dough before suddenly spinning around and putting some on Janus’s nose.  
“Gotcha!”  
Janus scrunched up his face, paralyzed in confusion and shock, causing Patton to giggle.  
“I-I have a reputation.”  
This only caused Patton to laugh more, flinging more cookie dough at him.  
“I refuse to participate in your antics. Just make the cookies.”  
“...Only if you help!”  
Janus sighed, “Fine.”  
He walked past Patton, starting to roll the cookie dough with his gloves still on.  
“Uh...Aren’t you gonna take those off?”  
“They’re clean,” he shrugged.  
Patton debated with himself for a bit. He supposed it was now or never, though.  
“There’s a reason you wear the gloves, isn’t there?”  
Janus tensed slightly, “I just...feel more comfortable with them on.”  
Patton paused for a moment, trying to gage what would happen if he pushed it.  
“But that’s only part of it, right?” He sighed, “Look, Janus, if you really don’t want to take them off you don’t have to, and you don’t even have to explain why either if you don’t want to, but just...Be honest, please?” He tried to ignore how ironic that last statement was, considering who he was speaking to.  
Janus took a deep breath and stopped what he was doing, slowly taking off his right glove first, before more hesitantly pulling off his left one-the one that covered his scaly, clawed hand. He nearly short-circuited when Patton held his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.  
“You don’t have to hide this from me. It’s okay.”  
The silence continued before Patton spoke up again, “You know, snakes are actually my favorite animal.”  
That sent Janus into a fit of giggles, “I thought it was cats?”  
“No, but they’re a close second.”  
“Well...I happen to find amphibians quite cute,” he gave a playful wink.  
Patton chuckled.  
“Well aren’t you a _charmer._ ”  
“Oh ha ha,” he said sarcastically before letting out a small grin, “How _hiss-terical._ ”  
They both laughed for at least a solid minute before returning to shaping the dough.

While the cookies were baking, they simply sat and chatted, enjoying each other’s company. When the oven went off, Patton carefully took them out of the oven as Janus hovered nearby, sticking his tongue out to take in the sweet aroma of the cookies.  
“Oh my gosh! Did you just blep?”  
“What?”  
“You stuck your tongue out! It was adorable!”  
Janus flushed, “I-I did no such thing.”  
Patton just gave him a smug smile.  
“W-well it’s how I smell! Although it is certainly not ‘blepping,’ it is _scenting,_ a very-“  
“It’s _cute,_ ” Patton cut him off.  
Janus huffed and crossed his arms, now trying to resist the urge to get a better smell of the cookies again.

Patton started dividing the cookies into tupperwares, each one the respective color of the side they were being given to.  
“Do you really think it’ll work?”  
“Probably not,” Janus said bluntly, earning a disheartened look from a Patton. He rushed to correct himself.  
“By that I mean it won’t fix everything, of course. But I suppose it’s...an olive branch. A start.”  
”Yeah,” Patton smiled, “ _A start._ ”


End file.
